BY ADEKOLA BOLUWAJI
A first-half strike by Auwal Ibrahim off an inch-perfect pass from Odinaka Okoro was the difference as Nigeria maintained their dominance over Tunisia in youth football at the 30 June Stadium in Cairo on Thursday.
The Flying Eagles played with confidence against the aggressive North Africans, and Ibrahim’s goal was well-deserved after Nigeria dominated in the first period.
The seven-time champions thought they had secured a penalty kick in the 72nd minute to increase their lead, after Mendos Richson was shoved to the floor, but the Video Assistant Referee ruled otherwise.
Goalkeeper Ifeanyi Harcourt came up with a big save three minutes to the end, denying Tunisian forward Ben Ali from close range, and the game ended with the Nigerians on the high and looking forward to their clash with Morocco’s Lion Cubs at the same venue on Sunday evening.
Victory meant a fourth victory for Nigeria in six clashes with the Tunisians at U20 level, going back to 1981 when the Flying Eagles defeated their visitors 4-0 in a qualifying fixture for the FIFA World Youth Championship in Australia. They lost the return leg 1-4 in Tunis but qualified for the final round.
In 1985, both teams played a 1-1 draw in Tunis in the title fixture of the African U20 competition, but the Flying Eagles won the return 2-1 in Lagos to collect their second continental title.
Two years ago, in the third-place match of the Africa U20 Cup of Nations also held in Egypt, Nigeria mauled Tunisia 4-0 to pick up the bronze medals.
